Gaza reaches most critical malnutrition level – War on Gaza Day 566

Compilation of news reports – IAK staff

The Israeli army killed at least 57 Palestinians in new strikes Thursday across the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, according to medics and media reports.

Among the dead are six members of one family—a father, a mother, and their four children, killed when the Israeli occupation forces bombed their home.

At least 18 civilians were killed in one attack on a shelter in Jabaliya, north of Gaza City.

NOTE: The Gaza Health Ministry’s daily casualty figures are based on the number of dead and wounded Palestinians brought to hospitals, and does not include victims that are under the rubble or elsewhere, where ambulance and civil defense crews can not reach them.

The medical director of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital has warned that the Gaza Strip has reached the most critical level of malnutrition, Stage 5, under the World Health Organization’s classification, as a result of the ongoing and severe blockade imposed by Israeli occupation forces.

Speaking to Voice of Palestine, Dr Khalil Al-Daqran described a dire humanitarian crisis in which children are suffering from extreme levels of malnutrition due to the severe shortage of food and infant formula, posing an immediate threat to their survival.

He also highlighted the grave risk facing approximately 200,000 Palestinians in Gaza with chronic illnesses, who are now without access to essential medications, putting their lives in imminent danger.

Israel admits shooting, killing Palestinian child in West Bank

The Israeli occupation army yesterday admitted its soldiers had killed a 12-year-old Palestinian boy in a town near Jenin, in the northern occupied West Bank, under the pretext that the child had attempted to throw an explosive device at the soldiers, Anadolu reported, citing a post on the Israeli Defense Forces’ official account on X.

But Defense for Children International-Palestine (DCIP) disclosed that Mahmoud was struck in the abdomen when Israeli forces opened fire indiscriminately from about 80 meters (262 feet) away. 

NOTE: Israeli forces and settlers have killed at least 963 Palestinians in the West Bank (~187 children) since October 2023.

A Bomb Threat Targeted Student Protesters. So Why Did They Get Blamed for It?

When a bomb threat coincided with a pro-Palestine student protest at Barnard College last month, the New York City Police Department arrested nine demonstrators. By the next day, local and national media had picked up the story. Some outlets suggested that the protesters were responsible for the threat. “Several Barnard College protesters in custody after bomb threat made during sit-in,” read one headline. 

That headline, as well as statements from Barnard College and the NYPD, overlooked a key fact: The Palestine solidarity protesters were actually the targets of the bomb threat.

This revelation has alarmed faculty and students, who are now being interrogated by school officials about the threat during inquiries over alleged student code of conduct violations. Faculty and attorneys working with the protesters are also concerned that information from those interrogations could be shared with the government, as Barnard faces pressure to hand over information about students to Congress — where Republicans have repeatedly painted student protesters as terrorists — as part of its investigation into antisemitism on college campuses.

“The fact that these students were targets does not seem to have been made clear,” said Homa Zarghamee, an economics professor at Barnard.

“What we have never heard from the administration — this time, or truthfully any time in the past — is anything about the fact that this was a threat made to our students, who we need to remember, again and again, are being disciplined for peaceful protest against the Israeli war on Gaza,” said Thea Abu El-Haj, a professor of education at Barnard.

Employees from Barnard College received text messages this week from the federally run Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on their personal phones linking to a voluntary survey asking recipients if they are Jewish or Israeli and whether they have been subjected to harassment or antisemitism.

The survey, which appeared to be part of the Trump administration’s aggressive investigations into American colleges and universities over antisemitism allegations stemming from pro-Palestinian protests, sparked anxiety among some recipients.

“Regardless of the stated intent, this survey in effect creates a list of Jewish faculty, staff and students at Barnard,” said Elizabeth Bauer, a Barnard professor and chair of the college’s biology department, who said she was alarmed by the message.

The survey asked whether the respondent currently works at Barnard or has ever been employed there and prompted respondents to select all that apply of the choices: “I am Jewish”, “I am Israeli”, “I have shared Jewish/Israeli ancestry”, “I practice Judaism” and “Other”.

Another question asked: “While working at Barnard College, were you subjected to any of the following because you practice Judaism, have Jewish ancestry, are Israeli, and/or are associated with an individual(s) who is Jewish and/or Israeli?”

Respondents could select from options including, “unwelcome comments, jokes or discussions”, “harassment, intimidation”, “pressure to abandon, change or adopt a practice or religious belief” and “antisemitic or anti-Israeli protests, gatherings or demonstrations that made you feel threatened, harassed or were otherwise disruptive to your working environment” (continue reading here).